Chess Club
by scapheap
Summary: Most of Taylor's powers were simple to understand, flight, fire and fitness. However, the chessboard was a lot more complicated then healing an injured Sophia would of had her believed. No DxD characters shall appear. There is no hell nor heaven on earth Bet. Enjoy.
1. Chapter 1

Chess club part 1

000

Flying was awesome, in Taylor opinion. Okay, she wasn't exactly flying, not with these scythe-like black wings out of her back that could not possible provide enough lift even if they were beating dozens of times a second, let alone the once per ten it was doing right now. It was more floating, but she had wings, unlike most flyers, and a tail with a suit spade end.

Thankfully she could put them away, shirts made for winged humanoids would be hard to come back. That and the problem of convincing people that the girl with wings and the upcoming cape with the same wings are not the same person.

Taylor fixed her sight upon her target, a tug boat left to rot in the graveyard of ships. Around her hand, red flames appear, converging into the open palm. She pull back the loose ball of heat and pitched it toward the boat.

The ball expanded on contact with the boat and turn a good ten feet circle of it red with heat. Some leftover fishing nets on the other side burst into flames and the waters nearby started to steam.

It wouldn't be Taylor first choice for a non-lethal takedown. She would certainty need to dial it down for anyone not rocking a brute rating and beside, a hero who left crooks with burns would not be too well rescinded.

Thankfully, her powers set gave her a brute ability. Nowhere near the level of her flames, but gave her the power to lift her bed with both arms. She could take out a normal thug without a visit to the hospital.

Landing, Taylor now pondered the weird part of her powers. With a gesture, a chessboard appeared. It look like a normal chessboard made of mahogany with only one half of the chess set in scarlet red. Taylor could not figure out what the function for this was. The pieces move easily when by her hand, but remained fixed from gravity and throwing the board. Moving them about the board didn't seem to affect the world in any way. They were just a puzzling component of her powerset.

With a thought, the board and her extra limbs vanished. It was about time to return from her 'morning run' so she started to head home.

"Ah..." a faint moan of the edge of hearing made her pause. It was most likely just a hobo and she should just ignore it to get out of the docks sooner, but her bleeding heart made her change direction.

Tracking the sound to an alley, Taylor saw a body sprawled out.

"Oh dear." Taylor exclaimed rushing to the dark skinned person. Thankfully, the girl was still breathing, but even Taylor could see the amount of blood leaving her body could not be good for long term survival.

Taylor realized who the girl was. "Sophia?" the bully simply gave a weak moan in reply, clearly out of it. This snapped Taylor out her shock, who started looking for Sophia's phone.

Coming up empty, Taylor wondered if she should just fly her tormentor to the hospital when the chess pieces appeared in her mind eye. Since Taylor was doubtful of Sophia surviving the flight, she summoned the board.

"Come on, now the time to do something." Taylor pleaded. As if it was listening, Taylor felt the urge to pick up a knight. Following it, she place the horse piece on Sophia's chest.

A moment pass and the red chess piece sank into the body and Sophia issued a gasp. Taylor watched the wound in the bully side closes at a rapid pace.

With Sophia now breathing evenly, Taylor got to her feet and left. She didn't wish to risk her bully getting even a hint that she had powers.

XXX

Sophia woke up with a start. She looked around the alley in a panic. Seeing she was alone, Sophia cast her thoughts to what she last remember.

She was on her morning runs and she went around that corner and- Pain. She pulled up her shirt and saw blood. However, her skin was unbroken.

Since Panacea didn't leave blood when she worked her magic, that means a new cape was around. This would mean Master and Stranger protocol once she reported this damn thing. Just lovey. Oh well, beat bleeding to death in a dirty alley.

Lord, she felt so tired. _'Must be the downside of the healing'_ Sophia thought to herself as she headed home in the morning sun.

000

This was written because someone on a forum went 'For the next 48 hours whatever idea you are thinking about, just write it.' And this is what came out. Since I view it as good enough I'm going to put it here for the people who are following me. They probable weren't following me for Worm's fics since this is my 'first'(there two one-shots on for mentioned forum, space battles, I'll trust anyone who want to read them to find their way there) fanfic in that fandom, but I already had a fairly wide collections of fandoms for this site(I will never know how so many people write so many different fanfics about one fandom).

Anyway review, flame or lurk.


	2. Chapter 2

Chess club part 2

000

For Taylor, the school day was normal. The ABB and Empire squared off, but never quite came to blows. The teachers pretended to teach. The odd part of the day were her bullies. Madison was the most effective member today. The reason was-

"Taylor Hebert?" "Here." "Hess is off, Mark Ichibod?" "Here."

Sophia wasn't here and without her, Emma seem lesser. Nothing major, but she would have a pause, like she was waiting for a signal before remembering Sophia wasn't here. The barbs still hurt Taylor, but the moments of Emma being so lost simply dampened the sting.

The other oddity was finding the effect of healing Sophia. When Taylor had ponder where Sophia was since the trio was now a duo, she wasn't expecting an answer of two and half miles east of here.

Further thinking gave Taylor Sophia's situation(Safe) and mood(Bored). Since her board was still missing the knight, she assumed that why she could sense Sophia.

She sighed _'Should I get the piece back? I mean I got 14 shots of healing assuming they all have the same effect and knowing where one of my bullies are would help with avoiding them.'_ Taylor tilted her head before shaking it _'I shall not heal my bullies to keep track of all of them. It a waste of resources.'_

Still, assuming her power was right, how was Sophia bored at being on the rig?

XXX

"39, 40, 41?" Said girl glanced around her cell _'It's 6 by 7 ceiling tiles, I must of dropped one somewhere.'_

The buzzer sounded and the door opened. A man in blue armour and a girl in a white cloak with the red cross on the front and as Sophia knew, the back.

She dipped her head at them "Armsmaster, Panacea."

The armoured man nodded back "Shadow Stalker, the initial tests have come back clean. Since Clockblocker needed treatment, it was decided that you will be return to normal duties once Panacea give you a clean bill of health."

"How lucky am I? Let just get this over with." Sophia grumbled, holding out a hand for the robed girl.

Panacea gripped the hand "I see the healing, your injuries were bad and were fix by...mass from no where." her eyes narrowed "No, your heart? And still healing."

Sophia frowned "Is that bad?" She felt fine, but if the injury was still healing 12 hours later...

Panacea shook her head "No, it just healing anything that pop up. What might be bad is the wings."

"The wings?" Both Sophia and Armsmaster spoke at the same time.

The healer move her other hand, lifting the back of Sophia's shirt. Sophia felt something shift within her.

"Those wings." Panacea stated. Sophia glance behind herself to spy a thin, claw-like black thing. "There also a tail, but I didn't wish to make a habit of depanting people."

XXX

Taylor paused. "What is it?" ask a lanky man at the same table as her.

"It nothing, Dad." She went back to her dinner, wondering what sent Sophia from relived to shocked.

000

Anyway review, flame or lurk.


	3. Chapter 3

Chess club part 3

000

Taylor adjusted the scarf that hid her face while walking one of the dark streets that made up Brockton Bay. Her first patrol as a cape was disappointingly quiet.

She exhaled "Really, what was I expecting? Just because we the crime capital of the country doesn't mean there a mugging on every corner."

With a hop, Taylor flew upward, surveying the building "Come on, give me something." her focus slipped to the rig. Sophia was asleep at the moment. She was still there after three days and Taylor had a theory that Sophia was now a cape. Her mood changes were similar to her own when she was exploring her powers, happiness, terror, wonder. Hell, her possible trigger event was similar to Taylor's own, bleeding to death in a street.

Taylor shook herself. Enough feeling kinship with her bully, she was still someone she hated.

A far off pop drew her attentions. It took a moment before her knowledge of the common sounds of Brockton Bay kicked in "Gunshots?"

XXX

Judas thunder below her as he tried to outrun the bastard in the demon mask. Bitch grimaced as the stump that was her right arm bounced, the first and for now only causality of a surprise Oni Lee. If they got out of this alive, the first thing Bitch would do would be to punch Tattletale in her smug face.

The whole reason why the undersides agreed to robbing the Ruby Dream Casino was because the ABB's two capes were elsewhere. And somehow Miss Know-it-all didn't trig before an knife got slammed into Bitch's arm.

Thankfully this happen after they got the safe open so if they got away, then this whole mess would not be for nothing.

That was a pretty big if, Bitch reflected, as the demon bastard appear, grenade in hand.

For a moment, her world was nothing but heat and light. Then her back felt like it broke in half as she smacked into a wall. She pull herself up once sure-footing was obtained and saw her teammates had stopped.

She felt like something was wrong with her sight. A feel with her remaining hand told her that her mask was gone and she was missing an eye. Well, she wasn't missing it, it was just mostly jelly on her cheek. A moment of hysteria draw a saying she heard of about dog owners resembling their dogs, but she didn't think the universe would get this hands-on to bring her more in-line with Angelica.

A movement caught her attention. That demon mask wearing fucker was still here. Bitch took a deep breath.

"Wait, don't you-!" Tattletale began.

Bitch whistled and the two upright dogs bolted, with their passengers. She picked up a wench, dropped by her involuntary dismounted and shouted "Hey, Oni Lee! Your money here!" a third of the stolen money was in the backpack she was wearing.

There, the ABB cape was looking at her from the rooftop. He turn to the fleeing dogs' direction. "Come on, coward!" Bitch yelled.

Lee snap back to the injured girl. Bitch stagger when a second Lee kicked her in the groin. She lash out with the wretch, getting a face full of dust as a elbow hit the back of her head.

Collapsing to ground, Bitch tried to get up again, but a foot was placed in the small of her back, telling her the backpack must have been ripped off moments ago.

Twisting her head as much as she could, she spied Lee with a grenade, pulling the pin. And then he wasn't there, replace by some lanky girl with thin black wings facing the other way with her fist outstretch.

There was a boom a small way off as the girl turn to her "You okay?"

Bitch just glared with her remaining eye.

"Right, sorry. I may have something that could help." The girl babble on, pulling out a chessboard of all things. She look at it for a moment before handing a castle-looking one to Bitch. "Apply to the chest and you should be fine." she dismiss the board before jumping away.

Bitch just look at the piece. "Not like I got much to lose" she spoke to herself, pressing the object to her bosom. Well, she tried to press it as it sank into her flesh instead.

Within moment, her right arm returned and a quick check told her the eye was back. With ease, Bitch stood and saw Judas's inert meatsuit. In a second, she was already tearing it open, breathing a sigh of relieve that Judas was still kicking within.

She look down the street, seeing the winged girl was tossing fire about the street, mostly like to limit Oni Lee movement, since she was delivering a fist to the chin whenever Lee came in for an attack.

Bitch look down at Judas.

XXX

Taylor glared at the cloud of dust. _'Alright, I'm now more annoyed then scared.'_ A soft noise behind her made her grit her teeth as she turn around.

Her assailant was oh course there, but this time, it wasn't dispelled by Taylor fist, but a mass of some kind of monster. The familiar remains of a Lee clone hung in the air as the stocky rider on top scanned around. Her head stopped on the roof line fixed the ABB cape.

 _'I see what she going for.'_ Taylor realized. She straighten up, stared at Lee and pulled the fires around the streets into her palms.

The seconds ticked by as Lee look back. And then he turn around and collapsed into more dust.

Taylor exhaled as she let the flames die. She turn to face the dog rider, who had also faced her.

The rider lowered her head "Thank you." the gruff girl spoke.

"N-no problem." Dear lord was the awkward level high at the moment, Taylor thought.

Thankfully the rider didn't seem to care "I should catch up with my team, but I shall remember your help. If you need something, I'm often at the shelter on River street." She start to lead off her mount.

"What is your name, by the way?" Taylor asked.

"It's Bitch, not Hellhound like the PRT would like to saddle me with. Your?"

"Um...Astaroth."

"I'll remembered it" and then the rider bounded off into the night.

A few moments passed before Taylor did anything "Why did I pick that name!" she shouted.

000

I probable not got Bitch right, but apparently that hard to do so I won't lose sleep there. As for the name I couldn't think of anything good so I went Astaroth because it ends like Kasparov. I'm sure someone could come up with a better name but they are not here.

Anyway review, flame or lurk.


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